Dollbaby: A Novel (33 page)

“So you see, Miss Ibby, I think Fannie must have seen me and Crow bury Muddy that night,” Queenie said. “Why you think she never wanted that tree cut down? She was afraid somebody gone find Muddy down in that hole. Some secrets should stay buried.”

Ibby thought back to that day in the cemetery with Fannie. “Fannie told me Granddaddy Norwood went out with the pelicans. I had no idea what she meant, but now I think I understand.”

“Never did find Mr. Norwood. Only a plaque out there at the cemetery.”

“Queenie?”

“Yes, baby?”

“The other night I found Fannie upstairs trying to get into the room at the top of the stairs. She kept saying ‘Little Mama.’ What did she mean by that?”

Queenie looked over her shoulder at Ibby. “I’m sorry, baby. I said all I can say for one night. Now help me up. They must have found what they looking for by now.”

The sun was just coming up as the Trouts pulled away from the house. Mr. Roosevelt arrived a few hours later to finish up the rest of the tree.

Oddly, Fannie didn’t once come out to the porch to watch.

A
ll was quiet at the house the next afternoon until Crow appeared at the back door clutching his hat.

Ibby had never seen Crow look so distraught, not even the day he came to tell them that Purnell had been shot.

“What’s wrong, Daddy?” Doll held the door open for him.

“Sit down, Queenie,” he said as he came in. “It’s bad.”

“What could be so bad, Daddy?” Doll asked.

He dropped his head. “It’s T-Bone. They come by the house just now and arrest him, take him away to jail.”

Queenie scrambled to her feet. “What? What for?”

Crow glanced up. His hands were shaking. “For the rape of Miss Annabelle Friedrichs.”

Queenie let out a wail so loud that Ibby thought the back windows might shatter. Fannie poked her head into the kitchen to see what was going on.

Queenie padded over to Fannie and draped her hands on her shoulders. “T-Bone, he just been arrested. You got to call your friend in the police department and get him out. Please, Miss Fannie. He didn’t do nothing. They made a mistake.”

“Calm down and tell me what happened.” Fannie helped Queenie into a chair.

Queenie put her head in her hands. “You got to help him!”

Fannie touched her shoulder. “I can’t help unless you tell me what’s happened.”

“They arrested T-Bone for rape,” Doll said.

“They say he raped Miss Annabelle Friedrichs,” Crow said.

“When?” Fannie asked.

“Last night,” Crow said.

Fannie looked from person to person, waiting for an explanation.

After a while, Doll broke the silence. “T-Bone didn’t do it.”

“How do you know for sure?” Fannie asked.

“Birdelia can speak for him. She was with him last night.”

Fannie shook her head. “Doll, you know that won’t help. We got an underage white girl accusing a black boy of rape. The police won’t care what another colored girl has got to say in the matter.”

“But there were other witnesses,” Doll offered. “Don’t that count?”

Fannie shook her head. “It’s Annabelle Friedrichs’s word against his.”

Doll kept eyeing Ibby, trying to get her to speak up. She knew she should tell Fannie what happened, but she was afraid if she told Fannie the truth, she’d get in trouble. When Queenie slumped down and let out a whimper, Ibby knew she had no choice.

“He didn’t do it,” Ibby piped up.

“How would you know?” Fannie said.

“Because I was with T-Bone last night, too,” she said.

Fannie squinted at her. “What do you mean?”

“Birdelia and I went over to see T-Bone play at Union Hall,” Ibby said. “We left there about one-thirty in the morning, then went to see the chicken drop over at the Ebony Lounge.”

“The police, they say it happened about three in the morning, according to Miss Annabelle’s account,” Crow chimed in.

Ibby shook her head. “She’s lying. T-Bone was still with Birdelia and me.”

“Why would she make it up?” Fannie asked.

Ibby spoke. “She was at the Ebony Lounge when we were there.
She tried to flirt with T-Bone, but she was so drunk, she could barely stand up. When we left, we saw her getting into her car. Someone got into the car with her, but it wasn’t T-Bone.”

“But why T-Bone? Why not name the boy she was with?” Fannie asked.

“T-Bone’s been working at the stables over there in Audubon Park, where Miss Annabelle keeps a horse,” Doll offered. “She knows him from there. Maybe she got mixed up, thought she was with him, when it were somebody else.”

“T-Bone couldn’t have done it,” Ibby said. “She’s just saying it to get back at me.”

“Back at you? That’s one heck of a way to get back at
you
by charging someone else with rape just for spite. I hate to tell you, Queenie, but I don’t think I can do anything for T-Bone with that kind of charge against him, no matter how many phone calls I make. It’s a white girl’s word against a black boy. And to make it worse, she’s not even eighteen. This is serious. I don’t know what I can do except post the bail. Unless—” Fannie stopped short.

“Unless what, Miss Fannie?” Queenie was wringing her hands. “Unless what?”

“Unless we can get her to drop the charges,” Fannie said finally. “That’s the only way.”

“It’d be a cold day in hell before Miss Annabelle gone admit she’s wrong,” Doll said. “She just ain’t that kind of person.”

“Yes, but that’s all we have to go on right now.” Fannie picked her car keys off the hook on the wall near the back door.

“Where you going?” Queenie asked.

“To pay Annabelle a visit,” she said.

Ibby hopped up from the stool. “I’m coming with you.”

“Fine. Let me make a quick phone call first. I think I’ll ask Kennedy to meet us there, in case she does change her mind.”

As they were heading out the door, Doll caught Ibby’s arm. She grabbed her close and hugged her, then whispered, “Have strength in
adversity, Miss Ibby. God will show you the right course. Remember that.”

Ibby sat in the front seat of the car, studying her grandmother’s profile as they drove along. She was thinking about everything Queenie had told her the night before, and it made her realize how someone’s life can change in an instant. If Queenie had been at the house the day Muddy came around, he would have gotten his money and left, and Norwood might not have gone off on his boat. She thought about her father, falling and hitting that rock. If it hadn’t been raining that day, would he still be alive? Then she thought about T-Bone, how his life was about to change just because he happened to be at the Ebony Lounge last night when Annabelle Friedrichs was there.

Fannie glanced over and caught Ibby staring at her. “What is it, Ibby? Is there something you want to tell me? Because I don’t want any surprises when we get there.”

“No, ma’am, just thinking.”

“About what, dear?”

“About life, I guess.”

Ibby was wondering, was it possible to change a person’s fate? As they pulled up to the Friedrichses’ apartment on Magazine Street, she figured she was about to find out.

Kennedy was already there, leaning up against his squad car, waiting for them. “Good day, Miss Fannie.” He tipped his cap.

“Good day to you, Kennedy,” she said. “Thanks for meeting me here.”

“I understand you may have information that contradicts the statement Miss Friedrichs gave at the station this morning,” he said.

“Between you and me, Kennedy, I’d like to forget about this whole mess,” Fannie said as she untied the scarf from her head and stuffed it into her pocketbook.

“How do you propose to do that?” he asked.

“By getting little Miss Friedrichs to see the error of her ways and
drop any charges she may be planning to make against T-Bone,” Fannie said as they walked up the front walk.

Kennedy didn’t look very optimistic.

“Would you mind staying just outside the door, in case we need you?” Fannie asked.

“Sure thing.” He stood off to the side as she rang the bell.

The door opened just a crack. When Honey Friedrichs saw Fannie, she tried to slam the door, but Fannie stuck her foot against the jamb.

“What do you want?” Honey demanded.

“I want to talk to Annabelle.” Fannie now had her hand on the door, fighting with Honey, as she tried to open it.

“Go away. She has nothing to say to you.” Honey tried to kick Fannie’s foot from the threshold.

“I have evidence that she doesn’t quite have her facts straight. Before we go to the police and charge her with perjury, I thought she’d like to hear what we have to say. Otherwise we’ll be heading down to the police station with Commander Kennedy here.”

Fannie nodded in his direction. He stepped forward so Honey could see him.

“What kind of information?” Honey asked, still trying to wrestle the door from Fannie.

“If you let Ibby and me in, I’ll tell you,” Fannie said.

Honey opened the door just enough to let them in.

Honey Friedrichs hadn’t aged well. Her face was puffy and her nose red from too much alcohol, and her hair looked as if it hadn’t seen a comb in quite some time. Annabelle was sprawled on the couch with a blanket pulled up to her chest. She had a black eye and there were bruises on her neck.

“What are they doing here?” Annabelle shrieked.

“They want to talk to you,” her mother said.

“I don’t have anything to say. Tell them to leave!” Annabelle demanded, pointing to the door.

“If you don’t talk to them, they say they’re going down to the police station to give a statement,” Honey said.

“Well, let them.” Annabelle turned her head.

“Annabelle, I have reason to believe that T-Bone Trout wasn’t with you last night,” Fannie said in a surprisingly soothing voice. “Or any other night for that matter.”

“How would you know? He raped me, then beat me up and left me to die.” She glared at Fannie with such ferocity that Ibby thought she might leap up and tackle Fannie to the ground.

“No, he didn’t, Annabelle,” Fannie said calmly.

“Yes, he did!” she screamed.

Honey put her hand on Annabelle’s shoulder.

“Get off me!” She yanked her mother’s hand away.

“You’re lying,” Ibby said.

When Annabelle’s head swiveled around, her eyes were wild. “How dare you!” She pointed at Ibby. “Get out! Mama, send them away!”

“You weren’t with T-Bone last night. I was.”

“You slut!” Annabelle hissed.

“Call me what you want,” Ibby said. “But he wasn’t with you. He was with me, and Birdelia, the whole night. We have witnesses who can testify that it’s true.”

“I don’t care what you say. You’re just covering up for him. It’s my word against his.” Annabelle’s face tightened.

“Annabelle, do you know what they do to people who make false charges?” Fannie gave her a stern look.

“I don’t have to talk to them. Mama, make them leave. Why’d you let them in in the first place?” She pushed her mother away from the couch.

Fannie went on. “Let me tell you how it will go down if you don’t drop the charges. They’ll put you up on the witness stand—”

“So?” Annabelle interrupted.

“And they’ll hear about how you were having sex in the stables,” Ibby chimed in.

“What?” Honey’s head shot around.

“Don’t listen to her, Mama. She’s making it up.” Annabelle glared at Ibby.

“Then they’ll hear from several more eyewitnesses as to how you liked to tie your horse up down by the batture and have sex under the willow trees.” Ibby kept her eyes on Annabelle as she spoke.

“That’s not true! She’s lying.” Annabelle wagged her finger wildly at Ibby.

“Then several more witnesses will testify that Monday night wasn’t the first time you had been to the Ebony Lounge. They’ll testify that you’d been there on several occasions. And each time, you had sex with men in the backseat of your car, which you had a habit of parking right out front.”

“Annabelle!” Honey cried.

“Shut up, Mama.”

“I saw you get in your car that night,” Ibby said. “But it wasn’t with T-Bone, because T-Bone was standing right next to me, with Birdelia on the other side of him. We saw a man get into your car. So did Shorty. So did the bartender at the Ebony Lounge. So did the officer who was on duty that night, who was standing just outside the door to the Ebony Lounge, the same officer who happens to be standing just outside your door right now.”

Kennedy coughed into his hand.

Annabelle sat upright. Her mouth flew open.

“Then, if that’s not enough for you, the lawyers will start on Miss Honey here.” Ibby tilted her head. “They’ll say how the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. They’ll outline her affair with Mr. Jeffreys down the street.” Ibby was spitting out her words.

“Calm down.” Fannie grabbed Ibby’s arm.

She yanked it away. “They’ll show that’s why your father left your
mother. They’ll go into the rest of your mother’s sexual exploits, just to prove that her daughter is just like she is.”

Honey Friedrichs put her hands on her hips. “Annabelle Friedrichs, you tell me the truth. That boy do this, or were you just whoring around again?” She bent over until her face was just a few inches from Annabelle’s. “Answer me, or I swear to God I’ll beat the living daylights out of you.”